Game apparatus having rolling balls and pivoted stop means



Jan. 11, 1966 M. BROWN ETAL GAME APPARATUS HAVING ROLLING BALLS AND PIVOTED STOP MEANS Filed May 20, 1964 [\TIQNTLJRS ROY M. BROWN JEROME D. ENQCH km I ATTORNEYS United States Patent 3,228,691 GAME APPARATUS HAVING ROLLING BALLS AND PIVOTED STOP MEANS Roy M. Brown, Brooklyn, and Jerome D. Enoch, Bronx,

N.Y., assignors to .Iaymar Specialty Company, Brooklyn, N.Y., a partnership Filed May 20, 1964, Ser. No. 368,928 Claims. (61. 273-118) This invention relates to games, and more particularly to a table top rolling ball game.

The general object of the invention is to provide an improved compact game apparatus, for normal use indoors on a table top. The game includes one or more balls which are rolled up an incline and past stops having different score values, the ball being arrested by one of the stops. It preferably but not necessarily is propelled by means of a cue type of stick.

More particular objects of the invention are to provide such a game which may be manufactured and assembled inexpensively, and yet which is attractive in appearance, and operates effectively.

To accomplish the foregoing general objects, and other more specific objects which will hereinafter appear, our invention resides in the game apparatus elements, and their relation one to another, as are hereinafter more particularly described in the following specification. The specification is accompanied by a drawing in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a game apparatus embodying features of the invention;

FIG. 2 is a partially sectioned side elevation thereof;

FIG. 3 is a fragmentary longitudinal section drawn to larger scale and explanatory of the operation of the ball stops;

FIG. 4 is a transverse section taken approximately on the line 44 of FIG. 1, drawn to larger scale than in that figure;

FIG. 5 is a fragmentary perspective view corresponding to the upper portion of FIG. 1, but showing a modified form of the invention;

FIG. 6 is a fragmentary transverse section taken approximately on the line 66 of FIG. 5; and

FIG. 7 is explanatory of a detail.

Referring to the drawing, and more particularly to FIGS. 1 and 2, the game apparatus there shown comprises a track board 12 and a ball 14. The track board is preferably hollow and made of plastic molded to provide a channel-shaped ball-guiding track 16. The material may initially be inexpensive sheet plastic. There are a plurality of ball stops 18 pivoted at spaced intervals along the channel 16.

In preferred form the board has a plurality of collateral tracks, and in this case there are three tracks 16, 20, and 22. A corresponding number of balls are provided, indicated at 14, 24, and 26. Each track has pivoted stops, and all may be alike, as shown in the drawing. The ball is preferably propelled along the track by means of a cue stick, indicated at 30 in FIG. 1. The track board is upwardly inclined, as shown in FIG. 2.

Referring next to FIGS. 3 and 4 of the drawing, each stop 18 has trunnions 32 which are received with a snap fit in bearings 34 formed in the side walls of the channels. The stops are preferably molded in one piece out of a plastic, as by injection molding. The stops are preferably curved upward at their upper or working ends, as shown in FIG. 3, so that they will effectively stop the ball despite its relatively large diameter. The stops are weighted at their other or lower ends, as is indicated at 36, so that the weighted end normally contacts the bottom of the channel. In FIG. 3 the left stop is in normal or rest position. The right stop is in the tilted position which it assumes as a ball rolls over it. As soon as the ball passes, the stop returns to working position, and if the ball returns and bears against the stop, the latter is selflocking because the ball forces the weighted end against the bottom of the channel. No special or additional motion limit means other than the bottom of the board is needed to arrest the motion of the stop lever.

For convenience and compactness in storage the track board 12 preferably is inclined with the aid of a detachable support. In the present case, the support is a pegshaped leg 40, the upper end of which is frictionally received in a socket 42 molded integrally with the board. The upper end of the peg 40 may be reduced in diameter, as shown in FIG. 6 at 44.

The bottom of the board is closed by means of a suitable panel 46. This may be made for example of fiberboard or a cardboard having a hard paper finish. The molded plastic track board 12 may be formed with an outwardly projecting peripheral flange 48, and this flange as well as other parts of the molded board may be cemented to the top of panel 46. The panel then serves to stiffen the track board structurally, as well as to improve the appearance of the product. The panel 46 has a hole near one end through which the support leg 40 may be passed when inserting it in the socket 42, as shown in FIG. 2. If desired, two spaced sockets may be provided for two spaced support legs, instead of using a single leg as here shown.

The board is preferably provided with means to limit the travel of a ball on its track. In the present case the board is molded with a raised abutment 56 at its upper end, and another raised portion 52 at its lower end. The latter differs from the part in being depressed at 54 (FIG. 1) to give the cue better access to the ball when propelling it along the track. The abutments 50 and 52 are most simply formed integrally with the rest of the molded sheet material, and therefore are hollow.

Referring to FIG. 1, it will be seen that the elevated ridges between channels or tracks are provided with numerical indications of score values. These are disposed at the position of the ball when resting against one stop or another. The score values are mixed, with low values adjacent high values, thereby adding to the uncertainty or risk when seeking a high score value. To further this purpose, the spacing between stops is preferably varied, and a high score value is associated with a short space along the track, thus making it difiicult to obtain a high score. The top stops have zero score value, to discourage a player from simply propelling the ball all the way to the upper abutment 50, with assured return to the uppermost stop. That stop therefore is credited with zero score value.

A modified form of the invention may be described with reference to FIGS. 5, 6, and 7 of the drawing. One difference is that the sides of the channels are shaped somewhat sinuously instead of being straight. The lower portion of the channel wall is expanded between stops, as indicated at 60. Viewed differently, it may be said that the channel walls have the spacing of the track, but are brought closer by means of inwardly projecting hearing supports 62 at each stop. A section through the board between stops is shown in FIG. 6. A section through the board at the bearings which receive the trunnions of the stops is shown in FIG. 7. It will be seen that the configuration here is much as shown in FIG. 4. However, at this point the bottom is preferably raised, as shown at 64, to form a stiffening bridge between the bearings. This elevation of the bottom is limited to the bearing region in order not to decrease the desired downward motion of the weighted end of the stop, as shown in FIGS. and 6. In FIG. 5 one stop has been omitted to further show the bridge 64.

Another difference is that the channels are rounded or sloped at their ends. This is clearly shown in FIG. 5 at 66 for the upper end, and the molded board is similarly rounded at the lower end. One effect of these changes is to stiffen the board. Another is to make it easier to mold the board by vacuum forming, and also to facilitate stripping the molded product from the mold. Another important difference is an improvement in appearance.

Another structural change shown in FIGS. 5 and 6 is a widening of the weighted end of the stop, as shown at 70. The increase in dimension laterally, as well as in thickness, adds'weight to the lower end of the stop, and so increases the dependability of its action. It may be observed that this construction is somewhat related to the change in configuration of the channel described above, because the widening of the channel between bearings provides ample room to receive the widened lower end of the stop.

The board is preferably molded of a suitable plastic material. This may be in sheet form and may be molded by vacuum forming. A medium impact polystyrene is one suitable material. The drawing operation is more readily performed when the draw is not too deep. A deep draw is more difficult to make; requires thicker sheet material; and it is more difficult to remove the product from the mold. In the present case, the main body of the board is drawn to a depth of only about threefourths inch. The end abutments 50 and 52 are somewhat deeper, say, one and one-eighth inch.

It is difficult to provide the desired pivoted stop action when thus limiting the depth of the board. The trun nions should be located safely below the bottom of the ball, so that the ball rolls smoothly on the straight corner edges of the track. The resulting low trunnions limit the rest angle of the weighted end of the stop, and if the stop were straight (instead of curved as shown in FIG. 3), it would not succeed in safely stopping the ball against return movement. However, by curving the stop its upper end is positioned as though the weighted end had been permitted to fall to a lower position. The operation then is much as though a board with a considerably deeper draw had been employed.

The stops are molded out of a suitable plastic material and may be molded in one piece, including the trunnions. The board 12 similarly is molded in one piece, including the ends 50 and 52, the socket 42, and the bearings for the trunnions. Even the score values preferably are molded on the surface of the board as a part of the main molding operation. The assembly is simple because it is merely necessary to snap the stops into their respective bearings.

The game may be played in accordance with a variety of rules. In one simple form, each player hits all three balls, and his score is the total of the three scores for the three balls. The next player then hits three balls; and

so on.

It is believed that the construction, method of assembly, and method of use of our improved game apparatus, as well as the advantages thereof, will be apparent from the foregoing detailed description. It also will be apparent that while we have shown and described the invention in a preferred form, changes may be made without departing from the scope of the invention, as sought to be defined in the following claims.

We claim:

1. A game apparatus comprising a track board, and a plurality of balls, said track board being made of a single piece of thin sheet plastic molded to provide a plurality of collateral channel-shaped ball-guiding tracks with in- .verted or closed-top spacer channels between the open track channels, molded ball stops pivoted at spaced intervals along said track channels, each stop as molded having integral trunnions received in bearings formed in the thin side walls of the track channels, said thin side walls being yieldable to receive the trunnions with a snap fit, said stops being curved upward and extended at the upper end far enough to stop a ball having a diameter which is large relative to the depth of the track channels, said stops being thickened and thereby weighted at the lower end to normally contact the bottom of the track channel except when a ball is rolling over the stop, and said board having score values on the tops of the inverted spacer channels along said tracks at said stops.

2. A game apparatus comprising a track board, a plurality of balls, and a cue, said track board being made of a single piece of thin sheet plastic molded to provide a plurality of collateral channel-shaped ball-guiding tracks with inverted or closed-top spacer channels between the open track channels, the bottom of said board being closed by a bottom panel to stiffen the board, molded ball stops pivoted at spaced intervals along said track channels, each stop as molded having integral trunnions received in bearings formed in the thin side walls of the track channels, said thin side walls being yieldable to receive the trunnions with a snap fit, said stops being curved upward at the upper end far enough to stop a ball having a diameter which is large relative to the depth of the track channels, said stops being thickened and thereby weighted at the lower end to normally contact the bottom of the track channel except when a ball is rolling over the stop, said board as molded having score values on the tops of the inverted spacer channels along said tracks at said stops, and said board being shaped at its ends to limit the travel of a ball on a track.

3. A game apparatus comprising a track board, a board support, a plurality of balls, and a cue, said track board being made of a single piece of thin sheet plastic vacuum formed to provide a plurality of collateral channel-shaped ball-guiding tracks with inverted or closed-top spacer channels between the open track channels, the bottom of said board being closed by a bottom panel to stiifen the thin board, molded ball stops pivoted at spaced intervals along said track channels, each stop as molded having integral trunnions received in bearings formed in the thin side walls of the track channels, said thin side walls being yieldable to receive the trunnions with a snap fit, said stops being curved upward at the upper end far enough to stop a ball having a diameter which is large relative to the depth of the track channels, said stops being thickened and thereby weighted at the lower end to normally contact the bottom of the track channel except when a ball is rolling over the stop, said board having score values on the tops of the inverted spacer channels along said tracks at said stops, and said board as molded being shaped at its ends to limit the travel of a ball on a track, said board support comprising a peg-shaped leg detachably received in a molded socket formed at one end of the board and serving to elevate that end in order to give the board an upward incline.

4. A game apparatus comprising a track board, and a plurality of balls, said track board being made of a single piece of thin sheet plastic molded to provide a plurality of collateral channel-shaped ball-guiding tracks with inverted or closed-top spacer channels between the open track channels, molded ball stops pivoted at spaced intervals along said track channels, each stop as molded having integral trunnions received in bearings formed in the thin side walls of the track channels, said thin side walls being yieldable to receive the trunnions with a snap fit, said stops being curved upward at the upper end far enough to stop a ball having a diameter which is large relative to the depth of the track channels, said stops being thickened and thereby weighted at the lower end to normally contact the bottom of the track channel except when a ball is rolling over the stop, and said board having score values on the tops of the inverted spacer channels along said tracks at said stops, the width of the track channels being substantially greater than the width of the inverted spacer channels and the width of the stops, and the lower parts of the side walls of the track channels being displaced a substantial distance toward one another at the bearings to bring the bearings close to the sides of the stops.

5. A game apparatus comprising a track board, and a plurality of balls, said track board being made of a single piece of thin sheet plastic molded to provide a plurality of collateral channel-shaped ball-guiding tracks with inverted or closed-top spacer channels between the open track channels, molded ball stops pivoted at spaced intervals along said track channels, each stop as molded having integral trunnions received in bearings formed in the thin side walls of the track channels, said thin side walls being yieldable to receive the trunnions with a snap fit, said stops being curved upward at the upper end far enough to stop a ball having a diameter which is large relative to the depth of the track channels, said stops being thickened and thereby weighted at the lower end to normally contact the bottom of the track channel except when a ball is rolling over the stop, and said board having score values on the tops of the inverted spacer channels along said tracks at said stops, the side walls of the References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,192,283 3/ 1940 Archibald 273-418 3,101,993 8/1963 Cohn 46169 X 3,182,420 5/1965 Bender 4615 X FOREIGN PATENTS 494,447 7/ 1953 Canada. 445,370 4/ 1936 Great Britain.

RICHARD C. PINKHAM, Primary Examiner.

L. J. BOVASSO, Assistant Examiner. 

1. A GAME APPARATUS COMPRISING A TRACK BOARD, AND A PLURALITY OF BALLS, SAID TRACK BOARD BEING MADE OF A SINGLE PIECE OF THIN SHEET PLASTIC MOLDED TO PROVIDE A PLURALITY OF COLLATERAL CHANNEL-SHAPED BALL-GUIDING TRACKS WITH INVERTED OR CLOSED-TOP SPACER CHANNELS BETWEEN THE OPEN TRACK CHANNELS, MOLDED BALL STOPS PIVOTED AT SPACED INTERVALS ALONG SAID TRACK CHANNELS, EACH STOP AS MOLDED HAVING INTEGRAL TRUNNIONS RECEIVED IN BEARINGS FORMED IN THE THIN SIDE WALLS OF THE TRACK CHANNELS, SAID THIN SIDE WALLS BEING YIELDABLE TO RECEIVE THE TRUNNIONS WITH A SNAP FIT, SAID STOPS BEING CURVED UPWARD AND EXTENDED AT THE UPPER END FAR ENOUGH TO STOP A BALL HAVING A DIAMETER WHICH IS LARGE RELATIVE TO THE DEPTH OF THE TRACK CHANNELS, SAID STOPS BEING THICKENED AND THEREBY WEIGHTED AT THE LOWER END TO NORMALLY CONTACT THE BOTTOM OF THE TRACK CHANNEL EXCEPT WHEN A BALL IS ROLLING OVER THE STOP, AND SAID BOARD HAVING SCORE VALUES ON THE TOPS OF THE INVERTED SPACER CHANNELS ALONG SAID TRACKS AT SAID STOPS. 